


Black and White

by nyssanys



Category: K (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, sometime around the Meiji era
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-02-21
Updated: 2014-07-09
Packaged: 2018-01-13 06:29:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1216063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nyssanys/pseuds/nyssanys
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fifteen year old Kurou Yatogami is faced with the harsh reality that his Master, Ichigen, was not going to live much longer due to his current condition. His last instruction from Ichigen is to go out there and make at least one friend and not lead a lonely life when he's gone. Kurou then meets a boy who calls himself Shiro, who travels with a foreign merchant and a small white cat. The strange white haired boy explains that they will be staying in the village at the base of the mountain that Kuroh lives on for quite a while. Is this Kurou's chance to finally make a friend?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Black and White is an AU that is set around the Meiji Era in Japan that is probably not quite historically accurate. Locations like villages, towns, and the mountain that Kurou lives on are not based on real places and are purely fictional.
> 
> The rating may change if future chapters become exciting.

Master Ichigen was very sick, and it was more apparent as each day passed. The normal morning training sessions were becoming shorter and shorter. “I’ve trained you well, young Kurou,” he would say. “There’s not much else I can teach you. Just keep up with your practicing and you should be fine.”

Kurou had faith in the older man and his words, but a small part of him knew the man was just not up to his usual self anymore. It wasn’t his fault and Kurou never blamed him, but the boy enjoyed every moment the two could spend together. In the morning, they would eat breakfast together. Now days, Kurou would be the one cooking, a skill Master Ichigen had taught him when he was a child. Of course he was better at it now and took every appraisal of his food with pride, especially if it came from Ichigen. After breakfast if the weather was good, they would go out and work on whatever Ichigen felt like working on that day. Sometimes, they would just sit together and meditate, other times they would spar. There used to be a more rigorous schedule, Kurou recalled, but not anymore. Not usually. After lunch, Ichigen would rest and it was routine that Kurou would prepare a pot of tea and place it by his master’s bedside before hiking down the mountain to the village below. If it had been his own desires, he would have stayed home and watched over the man, and taking care of him until he were better. However, Master Ichigen gave him strict orders to patrol the village until nightfall and return home for dinner, and to do this every day.

“Kurou, I’ve raised you like a son,” Ichigen began one day at lunch, “and you’ve matured so quickly for your age.” Kurou was ready to jump at the opportunity to thank Ichigen, but he was silenced with a small, polite gesture of Ichigen’s hand. “You know I am very sick. It would be foolish of you to think I will live past the next year at best.”

“Don’t say things like that!” Kurou put his hands on the table suddenly, accidentally knocking his bowl of rice over. Instinctively he began cleaning it up but the distress in his face didn’t leave him.

“This is the truth, and although you may not want to hear it, it must be said,” Ichigen smiled warmly. “Do you know why I have sent you down into the village these past years?”

“Of course!” Kurou was pale, but spoke with confidence, “You want me to protect the villagers. And sometimes to run errands on your behalf.”

Ichigen chuckled, “Is that what you’ve been doing so literally these past couple of years?” Kurou stopped in his actions for a moment, his expression tense. Ichigen helped him finish cleaning the spilled rice, and after a moment asked quietly, “Have you not made any friends?”

Of course the second question did not make anything less confusing, “You’re my friend, and I know all the villagers’ names. They’re always busy though and even when I spend time and help them, I can hardly call them my friends.”

His answer was truthful and warm even though the words that came out of his mouth were blunt. “Kurou,” Ichigen smiled, but shook his head. “Please try to make friends. You’ll be a lot less lonely when my time comes. Do you understand?”

“I…I thought we were passed that subject,” Kurou’s eyes flickered from Ichigen’s down to his own hands which were now on his lap, gripping the fabric of his hakama.

“Kurou,” his master’s voice was a touch stronger this time.

“Yes, sir. I understand,” he replied.

“You are fifteen now and you have no friends. I am a terrible father figure to have not given you this opportunity sooner!”

“Please don’t say things like that either! You’ve been excellent to me, Master Ichigen! Please do not talk bad about yourself like that.” He gripped the fabric tighter. He felt a hand on top of his head and that was when he realized that he wasn’t looking at Ichigen at all. His eyes met Ichigen’s once more, “Master--?”

“Finish your meal and go down to the village. It is time for me to rest, now,” He said, gently patting the boy’s head before removing himself from the table and going into his bedroom.

Kurou wasn’t hungry anymore but he finished his food anyway, put on the pot of tea, left it by Ichigen’s bedside, and reluctantly stepped out of their house. “I’ll be back soon,” Kurou said quietly.

The walk down to the village was painfully slow as Kurou’s thoughts were consumed with anxiousness. He was not naive to think that his master would live for much longer, but he had suppressed those thoughts because the man was still alive and there was no sense in worrying over it. However, it was different to hear his fears spill out of Ichigen’s mouth like it was nothing. He might have been ready to go, but Kurou had no idea what he was going to do without him. Would he stay and rot on this mountain until he bit the dust too? Alone?

Kurou stopped when he got to a large area of the pathway and sat down on a decent sized stone and took a deep breath. He had walked down this mountain for years and couldn’t remember the last time he was out of breath like this. He placed a hand on his heart for a moment to feel it pounding and then slouched, supporting his head with his hands, and gently rubbed his temples with his thumbs. Kurou pressed his lips together and closed his eyes focusing on the darkness for a moment and breathed steadily. This is what happened when he let his worries get to him. That’s what he boiled it down to. It didn’t help at all that his heart felt heavy, burdened with the pain of the future loneliness he would feel. If a mere taste of the pain was this painful, he was not sure he could bear to face the reality when it came.

“Meow?”

Kurou jumped up from his seat at the sound. “W-when did you get there?” he asked the white cat that was at his feet. “I didn’t even hear you before….” Suddenly more aware of his surroundings, the boy heard light footsteps getting closer. He recomposed himself.

“Oh, there you are, Neko,” a boy stepped though the thrush of branches and onto the path. “You found the path and some help! Good girl!” He was strange with his light colored hair and golden eyes. Kurou had never seen him before. “Hi, there,” he said in Kurou’s direction, a stupidly friendly smile plastered to his face.

“Hello,” Kurou responded cautiously and his senses focused. He could be dangerous. Or he could have brought danger with him, he couldn’t be too careful.

The white haired boy stared at Kurou quizzically for a moment before speaking again, “I got lost. I’ve been wandering this forest for hours trying to find the village again. Do you know where we are?”

“I do,” Kurou responded flatly. The air between them seemed to thicken with Kurou being overly cautious and this boy being so friendly and odd that it seemed suspicious.

“Great! Can you point me in the right direction?” the boy piped up after a moment.

“What for? What business do you have in the village?” Kurou lifted his chin slightly making himself appear a little taller than the other boy. The two stared at one another. Kurou’s bright gray eyes flickering challengingly, and the other boy wavering slightly under the pressure.

“I um,” he began. “I’m sorry if I bothered you. I’ll just follow this path here.” He hesitated for a moment, looking back at Kurou, and turning to leave, calling his cat behind him.

“W-wait,” Kurou blurted out without thinking. “I’m sorry. I’ve just never seen you before.”

The other boy stopped and faced him again, tilting his head slightly, “So everyone you first meet is dangerous?” Kurou was a bit taken aback by the boy’s charged question, but it was an odd situation and Kurou understood.

“Well, no, not exactly. It’s just that I protect that village, and anyone who comes in and out of it is of my concern.”

“But you’re so young! Aren’t there other people who can protect the village?” The silence that followed that question answered the boy’s question. “Oh, I see, I think. But you’re still young!”

“How old are you? T-to call me young that is,” when he realized what was coming out of his mouth he felt embarrassed. He didn’t even know the other boy’s name and yet he was asking for his age.

The other boy laughed, “Probably the same age you are. It’s just in other villages, there are older people who go around patrolling and protecting and stuff like that.”

“You are fifteen?”

“Close enough,” he bent over and picked up the white cat. “I’m fourteen. You’re fifteen? It’s been a long time since I’ve really talked to anyone like this that was close to my age.”

Kurou was becoming more and more curious about this boy. “I’ll take you to the village,” he said, smiling slightly.

The other boy noticed his smile and grinned back, “A smile looks good on you. By the way, my name is Isana, Yashiro. You can call me Shiro if you’d like to.”So friendly! With a stranger, no less!

“My name is Yatogami, Kurou.”

“Oh wow! So you’re ‘black’ and I’m ‘white’! What a coincidence!” Shiro pointed to their hair specifically as he made his observation. “How about we become friends? It seems that we will be staying in this village for quite a while.”

“We’ll see,” Kurou crossed his arms, still unsure about this character. “The walk down to the village is still quite a ways from here. What were you doing in the middle of the forest?”

“Exploring! Well, Mr. Weissman wanted me to look for some sticks to build a fire for tonight, but I kept getting distracted by everything.” Shiro put a hand on the back of his head and stuck the tip of his tongue out apologetically.

Kurou shook his head gently and took a few steps towards the path that led down to the village below. “Mr. Weissman,” he began, feeling out the foreign name on his tongue. “This person does not sound like they are from Japan.”

“Oh, he’s not,” Shiro caught up to him, walking by his side. “He’s from Germany. He said he came to Japan a long time ago when he was younger. My family knew him and his family and often let him stay in our home. He’s kind of like my God Father.”

Kurou listened with peaked curiosity, finding himself watching Shiro make gestures with his hands as he spoke that he wasn’t used to. Shiro filled the silence with his history, explaining at one point that his family had lived in Germany for a brief time, but something happened and Mr. Weissman had brought him back to Japan where they traveled to different villages making a living as merchants. Shiro explained that they had gotten into this village very early that morning and had been helping various people out as they could until someone offered them a place to stay in return. “Mr. Weissman says we might be here for a year or so. He really likes the mountains and the scenery,” Shiro concluded.

“I’m not sure that you guys will make much profit here in a farming village,” Kurou added gently. “There’s a bigger town further down the way. That’s where the merchants and other businesses thrive.”

“Oh, we’re aware,” Shiro stopped walking and looked at Kurou, “but it’s too busy. We like the quiet. It’s peaceful here.”

Kurou smiled, a warmth of pride growing in him to hear that someone appreciated this place like he had. “T-that’s great.”

Shiro set the cat on the ground and stood straight again. “Thank you for leading me here," he said as they stood where the forest path ended and the village one began, "I think I know the way back to the house from here. I’m sure you must be busy, but I hope I can see you again, soon.”

“Of course.” Kurou didn’t get it. He truly did want to see Shiro again, but he had never felt this way before with a person besides Ichigen. Could it be that this is what Master Ichigen meant by finding a friend?


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro likes to explore the new places he stays at. He has found something interesting and drags Kurou along to go exploring with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I need a new name for this fan fiction. 
> 
> Also, both Shiro and Kurou are not the brightest teenage boys.

Kurou parted ways from Shiro at the edge of the forest and made his rounds throughout the village. His mind was preoccupied with Ichigen’s new task for him, and then Shiro. Make a friend, he said. No one told him it would be awkward. His whole life he had never been close to anyone his own age. Because of this, it was easy for him to talk to and relate to the other, older villagers. The village did have people about his age in it, but they were not receptive of Kurou as a friend figure. They treated Kurou as an outsider because he was different, wealthier, or maybe it was because of his higher status. Whatever it was, it seemed that all the villagers were aware of the difference and treated him too formally. There was no way he could ever make friends with anyone in the village. It’s not that he didn’t try. This was just the way it was, and he had just accepted that.

Kurou stared aimlessly over the croplands from his spot on the hillside underneath one of the larger cherry blossom trees in the village. He leaned against the trunk, his legs propped up and his fingertips laced over his lap. It was late afternoon and Kurou had already finished his work. The summer sun was low in the sky, shades of red and violet licking the horizon. The wind was calm and comfortably warm. Kurou sighed. He was bored. This was routine. He had tried to return home early years before when he first started doing this, but Master Ichigen scolded him. He had said that Kurou needed to stay out until nightfall because that was when the village was most vulnerable. Kurou understood his master’s words, but the worst thing he had ever encountered was wild animals trying to eat the crops. He supposed that to the villagers that was something important to them, but the main reason why Kurou would stay out so late was because he was more afraid of his master’s punishment than anything happening in the village in his absence. So every day Kurou would walk around the village, occasionally make light conversation with the less busy villagers, and then wait until nightfall so he could go home. It was unbearably boring. 

The young swordsman started to doze off when he was startled by a small white cat that crawled into his lap to paw at his chest. “N-neko!” He reprimanded her gently for spooking him. “What are you doing here?”

Neko meowed. Pawing at his hand and then rubbing her head. 

Kurou relaxed once more and petted the cat until she was curled up into a ball, purring until she was fast asleep. It was nice to pretend for a moment that she was his pet cat. He never had any pets before. When he was younger he was too busy for one, and now Ichigen might not be able to handle the excitement. Nevertheless, Kurou had never asked for a pet. There were animals around the village too, though. The stray cats and dogs followed anyone with food around, but none of them really liked to be played with or petted like this. Slowly, he started to doze off again, resting his hand against the cat’s back, too tired to keep petting her, but she didn’t seem to mind.

Some time had passed before Shiro had found them. He crouched down and tapped Kurou’s shoulder to wake him, “Good evening.” The boy was still as bright faced as when Kurou met him earlier on the mountain. “It seems you and Neko are good friends. I’m jealous~!” 

It took Kurou a moment to register Shiro’s words but at once he sat up straighter, disturbing Neko who complained loudly. “I’m sorry. Was she missing? I should have thought to bring her back to you.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it,” Shiro replied. “She’ll go wherever she wants to go whenever she wants to do it, but she always comes home for food. I wasn’t worried.”

“I see,” Kurou relaxed a little, trying to calm the irritated cat by petting her again. She hopped off his lap instead and darted off some direction. “I upset her, I think.”

“It happens; don’t worry about it. She’ll get over it.” Shiro plopped onto the ground and crossed his legs. “What are you doing out here anyway? Other than cat napping?” He was genuinely curious. 

“Well, I—Um. Nothing, actually,” Kurou admitted, a little embarrassed. No wonder he couldn’t male friends. He was really boring.

“Good! Because I found this really cool thing and I want to show you!” Shiro was on his knees ready to spring back to his feet. Kurou started to stand and Shiro did just that.

“Show me? Why me?”

“Because you’re the only person I know. And you look really bored. So let’s hang out!” 

Kurou was dumbfounded. Had Shiro been looking for him to hang out with him? No, of course not. He couldn’t have been…. “Aren’t you busy with business stuff?” he asked with caution.

“Oh, no. Mr. Weissman handles all of that. He goes into the bigger town every day and comes back in the late evening. So I’m just here all day!” He grinned. “I sleep in for as long as I can stand and then I’ll just go wandering around. I was playing with the horses earlier and I saw you talking to some of the villagers earlier. They all really respect you.”

Kurou was unsure how to respond. “So…undisciplined.”

Shiro laughed loudly, which startled Kurou, “Compared to you, yes probably so!”

“Ouch…,” Kurou narrowed his eyes.

“Oh, come on. I’m only kidding around. Let me show you this thing I found,” he turned to lead the way, glancing back to make sure Kurou was actually coming with him. 

Kurou sighed and shook his head, “Sure, sure. Show me this thing.”

Shiro walked by his side, talking endlessly about this or that, usually involving things he’d done or seen in other villages to pass the time during the day. Kurou was interested in part and in part jealous – jealous because he didn’t really have anything interesting to offer to the conversation. He was glad that Shiro did most of the talking for them. 

Finally, Shiro had brought them a little ways out of the village, to a landmark that Kurou had known about for years. There was a tiny shrine on the edge of the pathway with a newly placed flower head. He bet that Shiro had put it there since no one had ever really done anything with the tiny shrine before. 

“Okay, so I’m sure you know about this, but look!” Shiro pointed to the forest edge where it looked like a rock was sticking out from underneath the brush. It took Kurou a minute to actually see where the boy was pointing. Shiro led him over to it and pulled back some of the leaves. “Look, here’s another one.”

“How…did you even see this?” Kurou bent down to examine the little shrine. In doing so, another one caught his eye deeper in the forest. “Another one.”

“You’re right! I wonder if they lead somewhere! Let’s follow them!”

It didn’t seem like a bad idea, so Kurou followed Shiro into the forest. The two followed the shrines one by one through and up the mountain until the sun had fully set and they were having trouble seeing where they were going. Their eyes adjusted as much as they could to the dim light of the moon but it was still hard to see. “Kurou,” Shiro began. The sound of his given name on someone’s lips other than Ichigen’s threw Kurou off for a moment, but he didn’t have a chance to reply when the boy said apologetically, “I can’t find the next one. It’s too dark.”

Kurou swallowed, trying glancing around them trying to find a sign that would lead them out of the forest. “We could backtrack. That will lead us out for sure.”

“That’s true. Can you see the other shrine from here?” Shiro squinted his eyes and peered into the darkness.

“Hm, yeah. There it is,” Kurou said after a moment. They did this for what seemed like an hour when the two realized they weren’t going the same direction that they had originally come from. The mountain side seemed to get steeper and steeper. “Shiro…I don’t think we’re going the right way this way either.” This was not the time to start worrying, but Kurou could feel his heart pounding in his chest. Was Master Ichigen worried about him? He should have been back a long time ago. Calm down, he coaxed himself. 

“That must mean that there were more of these shrines than we had seen before,” Shiro sounded both nervous and excited.

Shiro started to move to the next shrine when Kuroh called out behind him, “Mr. Weissman won’t be worried about you will he?”

“Oh no. Sometimes he doesn’t come back from town for a couple days. I can go home whenever,” Shiro kept moving, starting to have to climb the rocks at this point because the mountain was getting steeper. “Are you worried?”

“A little bit,” Kurou said, climbing after him. “I’ve never really been home late before. Master Ichigen might be worried.”

“Aw, Kurou,” Shiro laughed very softly. “Unfortunately, I don’t really know what to tell you—oh! Ow.”

“What happened?” Kurou climbed up next to Shiro who was looking intently at his hand. 

“I think I cut it on something…. I can’t see what it was though.”

Kurou grabbed Shiro’s wrist without thinking and saw a long dark line on his palm that looked like it was dripping. He pressed his thumb into the dark area and Shiro hissed. 

“That’s really deep, Shiro.” Kurou pulled out his handkerchief and wrapped it tightly around Shiro’s hand. “It would be better if we could run water over it….” 

“Thanks,” Shiro rubbed his cloth covered palm when Kuroh let him go. “Well, there might be water nearby, I think I near a stream.”

They both went silent and listened. It did sound like a stream was nearby. “I don’t know about this. Maybe we should just stay put until tomorrow morning.”

“Come on,” Shiro urged. “It’ll be boring to just sit here all night.” Shiro stood up again and followed the sound of the water.

Kurou sighed and reluctantly followed Shiro, “You’re already hurt.” Kurou stayed close by Shiro so that he could try to prevent him from hurting himself again. 

“I think we’re getting really close, Kurou! It sounds like it’s just right ov--!” Shiro hit the ground and started to slide faster than he could realize what was happening.

“SHIRO!” Kuro reached after him but he couldn’t catch him. “Shiro!” He called after him. The sounds of snapping twigs and rustling brush and clattering rocks halted. 

“K-Kurou….” Shiro called back. He had slid really far down. “Y-you were right. We should have stayed put.”

“Are you okay!?” Kurou called after him, feeling his way on all fours, carefully guiding himself down the slope. 

“I think so. It just hurts really bad.”

“What does?” 

“I think I fell into one of those shrines.”

“What makes you think that?” 

“It’s what stopped me from falling further. Are you climbing down?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Be careful. It keeps going. I’m actually climbing back up, stay put.” 

Kurou could hear Shiro shuffling around. He reached out feeling for him when he got closer. Finally felt the top of his head and he reached for the clothing on his shoulder and gripped it, pulling him up towards him. Both of them climbed back to the flatter land and sat very still, coming down from the adrenaline rush they had both just experienced. 

“What hurts?” Kurou asked again.

“I think it’s just some scrapes. It doesn’t hurt as bad anymore.”

“I’m glad,” Kurou let out a sigh of relief. “I don’t know what I would have done if you had broken something.”

“Were you worried about me?”

Shiro could feel the glare Kurou was giving him through the darkness. “Don’t ask stupid questions. Let’s just try to sleep.”

“That…doesn’t sound like a bad idea actually. I’m exhausted.”

Kurou curled up into a ball on his side and laid his head on his arm, trying to get as comfortable as he could. He could hear Shiro shuffling around for a moment but then he too stilled, exhaled, and relaxed. “Goodnight, Shiro.”

“Kurou,” Shiro began, “You’ve been calling me by my given name this whole time.”

“Should I not? You keep calling me by mine.”

“No, it’s just that I noticed it. I like it. It means we’re friends.” Kurou could practically feel him beaming brightly.

“Goodnight, Shiro.” Kurou concluded. It didn’t want to comment on that because they had just met today. However, he couldn’t help but admit that it was a nice feeling and despite wandering aimlessly through the forest together Kurou had fun. It was different and nice.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ichigen misinterprets what happened the night before. Or rather, is he predicting something?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am still at a loss for a real title. I hope something will come to me as chapters progress.

Light showers rolled through the early morning, filtering through the leaves in a mist. Kurou stirred awake, sat up, and combed the hair out of his face with his fingertips. Not long after, Shiro was sitting up too. “Where…are we exactly?” 

Kurou narrowed his eyes at him. It was bright enough that they could see where to walk, but not bright enough to really see much in the distance, not to mention the thin fog that was gathering around them. “We should probably get moving. I think I do know where we are.”

Shiro watched the other boy as he stood up, admiring quietly how pretty he looked with his damp hair sticking to his skin. Kurou glanced back at him for a moment and Shiro leapt to his feet. A shot of pain whipped through his ankle and he fell forward, Kurou catching him without hesitation. 

“What’s wrong?” He asked, noticing that Shiro wasn’t putting weight on his right foot. “Is that from last night?”

“Must be,” Shiro replied, trying to stand on one foot, but Kurou would not let him go completely. Shiro avoided eye contact as he pulled the bottom of his pants up so he could see his ankle. It was bruised badly and very swollen. He must have sprained it. It didn’t feel broken. “Ow...,” he complained. 

“You’re not going to be able to climb down with your ankle like that. I can carry you,” Kurou offered.

Shiro’s cheeks tinged red, “I um, --what did you say?” 

“Is there a problem? It’s the only logical solution,” Kurou wasn’t backing down, which made Shiro fluster a little more.

“Er—no, but I’m really heavy! I eat a lot…and you’re…,” he began, but instantly regretted.

Kurou shook his head and without further questions, he carefully pulled Shiro onto his back and stood with ease, “Is this convincing enough for you?”

Shiro tried to hold on to Kurou without touching him as much as possible because the contact seemed so sudden, but at the same time, it was nice to be able to rest his ankle, “Y-yes….”

The darker haired boy shifted Shiro a little so that he was hanging on better, which startled the white haired boy even more, but Kurou didn’t notice a problem at all. He began to walk, following the land as it wound back down in the direction of the village until he found the path he had known like the back of his hand. They must have traveled quite a ways up the mountain yesterday because they popped out at the halfway point on the path, about where Shiro had first met him the day before. “Do you have a habit of getting lost?” 

“N-no not really,” he replied. “I usually don’t stray from the village too far. I just figured with you it would be fine.”

“Why? Because I live here?” He asked, starting up the mountain.

“Are you upset by that?” 

“No, not at all,” he replied and fell back into silence, concentrating on each step he was taking on the slick ground. 

After some time had passed, Shiro asked, “Where are we going anyway?”

“To my home. We have some stuff for your wounds and ankle. I figured this would be best.” Kurou peered over his shoulder at Shiro, who blinked at him, smiling stupidly. 

“Oh, okay.”

“That and I am worried about my master. I really need to see him as soon as possible,” The black haired boy shook some of the water out of his hair and added, “I was supposed to be home last night before dinner. I hope he wasn’t too worried.”

Shiro wasn’t sure how to reply. Instead he found comfort in listening to Kurou’s footsteps on the soft earth. He was surprisingly strong for being so frail. Shiro was sure that he was going to break him if he hung on too tightly, but any time he loosened up, Kurou would reposition him, so he stopped trying. After a moment, he rested his head on his shoulder for comfort sake and watched the rain fall and the trees move passed them. 

When the path began to open up into a clearing, Shiro perked his head up and gasped in awe at the house before him. It was nothing like the village houses—it was far more elegant. “This is where you live?”

“Yeah,” he said, turning and setting Shiro down on the elevated, wooden porch. “Wait here and I’ll return with towels.” Kurou slid the doors open and went inside.

Master Ichigen was waiting by the breakfast table, sipping a cup of tea. He didn’t look too bad today. “Good morning, Kurou, how was practice?”

Kurou, shocked by the question, knelt down near Ichigen and bowed his head, “I’m so sorry, Master Ichigen. I was out all night and—“

Ichigen cut him off, “Kurou, come, sit up. You were out all night? I slept through dinner last night; I didn’t even notice.”

“What?” Kurou exclaimed.

“I didn’t feel well enough to eat so I went back to sleep. I figured you had dinner without me and went to bed. What were you doing out all night?”

“I met someone.”

“Oh!?” Ichigen looked far more excited than Kurou expected.

“Yes, his name is Isana Yashiro.”

“HIS!?” Master Ichigen exclaimed. “Kurou, I had no idea! I’m proud of you! When did you meet this boy?”

Kurou began to explain the events of the previous day in almost exact detail as he recalled it. Ichigen was listening carefully, excited to know more about this boy Kurou had met and had adventures with.

Meanwhile, Shiro was listening in, not because he was nosy, but because it was hard not to overhear. The kitchen area was right on the other side of the wall he was sitting in front of. He began to blush at the older man’s implications and blush more at the fact that Kurou wasn’t rejecting his assumptions. He didn’t know what to think of this situation and he certainly didn’t know what his feelings were on the matter because he had only just met Kurou.

Finally, their talking ceased and Kurou returned with towels. By this point both of them were mostly dry. “There’s a bathhouse out back. Would you like me to carry you?”  
“I can hobble.” Shiro stood carefully, his weight shifting to his good leg. “A bath sounds really good right now, actually.”

Ichigen came out of the house and leaned in the doorway. “Good morning, Isana.”

“Hello, Mr. Ichigen,” he replied politely. “Please, call me Shiro.”

“I heard about your ankle. Please relax in the bath and I can tend to your wounds after.”

“Thank you, sir,” he replied. Kurou put his arm under Shiro’s back to help support him while he walked. Ichigen admired them for a moment before retreating back to his tea. He was reminded of how he used to do that for Kurou when he was younger and would accidentally hurt himself. 

Shiro was thankful that he was turned away from Ichigen when his face began to flush. The man was already probably under the wrong impression and he certainly didn’t want to keep leading him in the wrong direction. 

The bathhouse was a fenced around area of a hot spring with a small building where towels and clothes could be hung and placed. “Can you manage from here?” Kurou asked.

Shiro nodded and limped into the small room. He undressed and wrapped a towel around his waist and exited into the spring, slowly sinking into the steaming water. Kurou followed behind him, also adorning a towel around his waist. The drizzling rain felt nice while it lasted, but eventually it passed.

“How are you feeling?” Kurou asked, sinking up to his shoulders into the water.

“I’m fine,” Shiro was avoiding looking at him. “The water burns all my cuts, but that’s probably a good thing.”

“Master Ichigen is preparing treatment. He’s also bringing out clothes for us to change in. Will Mr. Weissman be worried if you stay here a while?”

“Maybe, but I’ve done this before—stayed out and stuff. I’ll go back eventually and explain everything. Don’t worry about it.”

“I’m glad. You’ll need to prop your ankle for a while. Maybe a couple of days. I could carry you back if I really have to….” 

“No, no. This is fine. Thank you for your hospitality,” Shiro said, smiling sincerely and slightly bowing.

“I um—no problem,” Kurou replied, the formalities of the other male catching him off guard.

“Kurou, I need to ask you something while I’m thinking about it, if you don’t mind,” Shiro began, his heart beating in his ears with anticipation for the worst possible outcome of him bringing this up at all, but he had to know what was going on. Was Kurou really dense or what?

“S-sure,” he hesitated, tilting his head just slightly. 

Shiro swallowed and fiddled with his thumbs on the surface of the water. “What happened back there? In the house? Did you mean for him to get that kind of interpretation?”

“What do you mean?”

“When you and Mr. Ichigen were talking, he was under the impression that we were…we were….”Kurou urged him on just by blankly staring at him and blinking, still not quite understanding. “…together. Like… _that_.”

“Shiro… like what?”

Shiro rubbed a temple and sighed, his adrenaline subsiding substantially. Kurou was really just dense. “Kurou, Mr. Ichigen, I think, is under the impression that we’re…boyfriends. Like…lovers.”

Kurou’s eyes widened, “H-how would he get that kind of interpretation? I only relayed what happened exactly as it did!”

“I heard that. It seems that maybe he’s reading into it deeper than it is,” Shiro glanced up into Kurou’s face to gather what kind of expression he was making but he didn’t look for more than a split second. 

“How do I even respond?” Kurou was flustered, staring down onto the water’s surface, searching for words he couldn’t find in the sky and trees’ reflection. “I don’t even know how to make friends, let alone a lover friend. Oh no….” He was muttering to himself, but Shiro overheard and suddenly his heart skipped.

“Kurou,” Shiro began, reaching out to tap Kurou’s shoulder, to break him from his inward conflict. “What do you mean you don’t know how to make friends? Do you not have any…friends here?”

“No, I don’t,” he responded honestly. “You’re the first person my age I’ve talked to like this. Or done this with.” He was referring to the bath. “Or anything.”

“Does this mean I’m your first friend?”

“Well, closest to it. I only met you yesterday,” he said. Silence filtered through the air between them and at that he quickly added, “Do people call others their friends within a day?”

“S-sometimes, yes, that happens,” Shiro replied softly.

“Then yes, I suppose you are my first friend. You’re the only other person to call me by my given name. That’s a sign of fondness, Master Ichigen said once.”

Shiro smiled warmly, and watched Kurou lift his eyes to meet his, “I’m glad I could be your first friend.”

Ichigen was coming to bring them towels when he overheard the final bits of their conversation. He leaned against the building and placed a hand over his heart. He felt a glow of warmth grow in his chest. Kurou might not understand all of this entirely, but Ichigen was proud that Kurou was able to find Shiro and that Shiro seemed to be really patient with him. “I’ve brought you dry towels and clothes when you two are ready,” he said finally, opening the door and placing the items on one of the benches. “I’ve also warmed some breakfast when you two are ready.”

“Thank you, Master Ichigen,” Kurou called back, Shiro nodding in agreement. Ichigen returned to the house and the two stepped out of the bath, dried off, put on the attire, and followed behind him, guided by the smell of fresh food. Their stomachs were aching from having missed dinner.


	4. Chapter 4

Kurou and Shiro finished up their bath and put on the robes Ichigen had left for them with the towels. Kurou helped Shiro balance as they walked to the house. Once at the breakfast table, Ichigen pulled Shiro’s leg into his lap and began to wrap his sprained ankle. This startled Shiro at first, but he got over it quickly because food was in front of him and he was starving. Kurou ate neatly but Shiro was accidentally spilling rice everywhere. 

“Please stay as long as you need to,” Ichigen tied off the bandage and returned Shiro’s leg to him. “You’ll want to rest your ankle and prop it up so the swelling will go down.”

“Thank you very much,” Shiro responded, wiping his mouth off. “I do need to go back to Mr. Weissman soon. It’s normal for me to be gone for some time but he might become worried.”

“I could go into town tomorrow and tell him that you are here. Your lack of grace in climbing the mountain could ruin your ankle at this rate,” Kurou stated bluntly.

“Well, geez, thanks,” Shiro playfully glared at him. He was telling the truth though. Shiro didn’t think that he was exceptionally clumsy but he certainly had his moments. “You really wouldn’t mind walking back down to tell him? Wait a minute. Here, I could write a note if you have something I could write on.”

“Sure, one moment,” Ichigen replied, removing himself from the table and coming back with a piece of paper, an ink bowl, and a brush. 

Shiro gripped the brush strangely as though he hadn’t had practice writing with one and dipped it into the ink well and scribbled the note and handed it to Kurou. “This is just in case he is not there.”

“I’ll deliver it first thing in the morning when I go into the village,” Kurou concluded, setting the note off to the side so that it would not get ruined by the food on the table. 

“Actually, Kurou, how about I deliver it tomorrow. It’s been a while since I’ve gone down into the village and I’ve been feeling much better today, so tomorrow shouldn’t be a problem,” Ichigen said. 

“Are you positive, Master Ichigen?” Kurou stiffened.

“Yes,” he replied. “Besides, it is not proper to leave your guests.”

“What if something happens?” Kurou exclaimed.

“So what? Something could happen right here. There’s no difference in being here or outside. Don’t worry so much, Kurou. Stay here tomorrow. Sleep in. Relax. I will be fine.” Ichigen reassured Kurou but with a slight bite to his words. It sounded a little like he was giving orders.

Shiro watched the exchange between the two and found their relationship to be rather strange, different than what he had been used to and seen in other families. “Thank you for the meal,” he said, hoping to change the subject.

“Ah, you’re very welcome, Shiro-kun,” Ichigen responded, smiling brightly. “I think I will go have some tea and relax in the garden. You two, be good.”

“Of course,” the two said at the same time and glanced to each other, startled. 

Ichigen smiled and left the two alone.

Shiro rolled onto the floor and srpead his arms out wide, exhaling. “Your house is so big!” He exclaimed in awe, really appreciating it’s tall ceilings from this angle. 

“Thank you,” Kurou softly replied, as though he did not feel that he should be taking credit for the compliment. “It’s nice. I like it here.”

“I live in the back of a horse-pulled cart. Any permanent place of residence is better than that,” Shiro winked. “But it’s not bad. It’s fun to travel too.”

“I’ve never been anywhere but here,” Kurou admitted sheepishly. “I’ve only heard stories of other places.”

“Would you like to hear more?” Shiro sat up and turned to Kurou with hopeful eyes.

“Yes, certainly,” the other exclaimed.

Shiro began to recount a story of his travels. During which, Kurou led him to the guest room where he rolled out a futon for him and provided a couple of pillows to prop his ankle with. Shiro made himself comfortable but continued with his tale until he yawned. “Sorry about that. I must be more tired than I thought.”

“We didn’t sleep very well, that’s for sure,” he replied, wearily. He was leaning against the wall trying his best not to fall asleep to Shiro’s talking. He was interested in the story, but   
was also very tired. “Please, feel free to nap. I will be in the other room,” Kurou stood to his feet turning to leave.

“Are you going to nap, too?”

“Probably, yes.”

“Come in here?” Shiro patted the space beside him. “That way we can chat a little more before we fall asleep.”

Kurou nodded and turned away, feeling his cheeks redden at the invitation. He had never done that with anyone before. It was a strange feeling. He returned with his own futon and pillow and laid down beside the other male, who smiled. 

The two of them were asleep before any of them said a word.

Ichigen came in from the garden, located the boys and smiled. Kurou looked completely relaxed and that made him happy. He wanted the best for him and he wanted him to be happy. Ichigen could feel that Shiro would bring this to Kurou. Pure instinct had told him so.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all of your support! I am sorry that I haven't updated this in so long. I started writing this during my senior year of university (that was a bad idea) and I got really hung up over this chapter because I just didn't feel it coming through. Then, I just sat down and trudged through it because more exciting things are to come!


End file.
